PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

PYPL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on PayPal from $92.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna increased their price target on PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America raised PayPal from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $86.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.03.

PayPal Price Performance

Shares of PYPL opened at $65.15 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $76.28 and its 200 day moving average is $80.90. PayPal has a 12-month low of $56.97 and a 12-month high of $93.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $64.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.52.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $8.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.27 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 13.04% and a return on equity of 23.67%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.48 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PayPal will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In other news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $176,478.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 29,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,145,308.10. This represents a 7.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PYPL. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC grew its position in PayPal by 113.8% in the fourth quarter. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC now owns 7,470 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $638,000 after acquiring an additional 3,976 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PayPal during the third quarter valued at approximately $387,435,000. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. grew its holdings in PayPal by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 697,077 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $59,489,000 after acquiring an additional 18,172 shares during the last quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 33,302 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,842,000 after purchasing an additional 7,291 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of PayPal by 120.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,555,240 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $125,461,000 after purchasing an additional 849,311 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PayPal Company Profile

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a technology platform that enables digital payments on behalf of merchants and consumers worldwide. It operates a two-sided network at scale that connects merchants and consumers that enables its customers to connect, transact, and send and receive payments through online and in person, as well as transfer and withdraw funds using various funding sources, such as bank accounts, PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products comprising its installment products, credit and debit cards, and cryptocurrencies, as well as other stored value products, including gift cards and eligible rewards.